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The Modern Period

The Modern Period. 1914-1945. Historical Events. World War I (machine guns, trench warfare) 1920’s Economic Boom (Roaring Twenties) Prohibition The Great Depression (25% out of work) became a state of mind Roosevelt’s New Deal ended the depression World War II (bombers) The Holocaust.

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The Modern Period

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  1. The Modern Period 1914-1945

  2. Historical Events • World War I (machine guns, trench warfare) • 1920’s Economic Boom (Roaring Twenties) • Prohibition • The Great Depression (25% out of work) became a state of mind • Roosevelt’s New Deal ended the depression • World War II (bombers) • The Holocaust

  3. Advancements • Radio • Movies • Towns  Cities  Metropolises • Books available as paperbacks

  4. Decline • Town populations shrank • Farmers suffered after severe drought (Dust Bowl)

  5. Historical Themes • War and Its Aftermath • Disillusionment with Old Ideas and Ideals • Wider Cultural Awareness • Fragmentation of Experience

  6. In Literature • The “lost generation” – disenchanted with America, left and went to Paris • T. S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land” summed up sterility of postwar world. • Glittering city dwellers faced disillusion and emptiness. • The Harlem Renaissance captured the sights, sounds, and emotions of modern urban life. • Midwest, California, South became settings for ironic and tragicomic tales.

  7. Modernism – A Desire for the New • Women writers took on a larger role • African-American writers took on a larger role • Established literary “rules” broken (shorter bursts of ideas, less natural flow)

  8. American Literature • Narrative Conventions ignored: transitions left out, plotlines unresolved, characters’ dreams and fantasies woven into narratives • Forms: multi-layered chapters, free-flowing volumes, images rather than explanations, stream-of-consciousness, snappier dialogue • Themes: Implied – look very closely and figure it out for yourself. • Tone: Ironic tone depicts difference between the world as it was and how it should have been.

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